Traveling with Rats:
Traveling with any pet can be stressful, especially when they're as small as rats are. There are a few ways to make this process less stressful though, both on you and the rats. The first thing you want is a good carrier. This carrier should be a small and tightly secured with adequate ventilation and room for a water bottle. There are several different carriers out there that satisfy these requirements, including:
Small Cat Crate:
I find that cat carriers make ideal rat carriers as well, so long as your rats aren't small enough that they can squeeze through the 1 inch by 1 inch bar spacing. To get around this in the case of young or small rats, you can always zip tie a square of hardware cloth to the carrier's entrance. I do find that this makes attaching a water bottle a bit harder, however for short trips like going to the vet you won't need to attach a water bottle to the carrier so the rats should be fine.
Pet Store Travel Cage:A good small animal carrier is often the best choice for transporting rats. This especially goes for baby rats, who can often squeeze out of holes larger than 1/2 an inch. I tend to use the carrier shown here for transporting baby rats or transporting rats to the vet because its small bar spacing and large door makes it ideal for transporting up to 5-6 baby rats or 2-4 adults comfortably.
Bin Travel Cage:
Like the critter keeper mentioned above, a bin travel cage can be great for containing even the smallest of rats. Like critter carrier it can also easily support a water bottle if you place velcro onto the wall and bottle. However, it also suffers from the problem of being poorly ventilated and thus best used only for shorter trips. However the nice thing about bin travel cages is that you can customize them to fit your current number of rat. I've seen some very nice bin cages that could accommodate 5-10 rats while traveling and you can easily adjust the size based on the bin that you buy.
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Critter Keepers:
Critter keeps are small plastic tanks that come with a holey plastic lid and a small plastic door for carrier access and ventilation. These carriers are best suited for short trips that don't require the rat to be in them for too long, as they don't provide the rats inside with much ventilation. that being said these carriers are pretty much the best as containing rats of any age because their solid plastic body makes it impossible for the rats to chew out. If you attach some velcro to the side and then to the back of your water bottle you can also include the water bottle fairly easily. My critter keeper is the largest size I could find and about 5 gallons. I think the most rats it could fit for a trip would be 4, although even that would be pushing it for longer trips.
Wire Hamster/Pet Store Cage:
While pet store rodent cages are infamous for being way too small, they do tend to be just the right size for a rat travel cage. My wire hamster cage can easily fit 4 or more rats and has room for a hammock and house if the space is used wisely. The wire sidings ensure that the rats receive adequate ventilation while also containing even the smallest rat inside inside with its 1/2 inch bar spacing. And attaching a water bottle is as easy as sliding it through the bars of the cage. The biggest downside to wire hamster cages is that I often find them to be less sturdy and less secure than the cages listed above, so I only use them if I need to house my rats temporarily for over a day or if the trip is longer than a few hours.
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What to put in the carrier:
Once you've picked your carrier you also want to know what to put in it. For most trips, I recommend a light hide of sorts (a cardboard tissue box works well) and no hammocks or heavy toys. The reason I caution against hammocks and heavier toys is because if you stop your car suddenly its possibly for the heavy toys to fall over and hurt your rats, or for them to be flung out of a hammock and and hurt themselves that way. A light cardboard box will be just as effective at giving the rats somewhere to hide and feel safe, while also ensuring that in the case of a hard stop the rats don't get hurt by surrounding objects.
Another thing to be careful with is your water bottle. While you do want to make sure your rat gets adequate hydration during your trip water bottles can prove a bit of a safety hazard during trips. At best they can leak as the cage gets jerked around during travel and at worse your rat can chip a tooth while drinking if the car hits a bump. Its much safer to just keep the water bottle out of the cage and instead provide your rats with a watery piece of fruit like a slice of cucumber or carrot. Then whenever you stop at a rest stop you can put back in the water bottle for the duration of your stop to let the rats drink from it if they wish.
Another thing to be careful with is your water bottle. While you do want to make sure your rat gets adequate hydration during your trip water bottles can prove a bit of a safety hazard during trips. At best they can leak as the cage gets jerked around during travel and at worse your rat can chip a tooth while drinking if the car hits a bump. Its much safer to just keep the water bottle out of the cage and instead provide your rats with a watery piece of fruit like a slice of cucumber or carrot. Then whenever you stop at a rest stop you can put back in the water bottle for the duration of your stop to let the rats drink from it if they wish.
Dealing with Heat:
Another thing to be wary of during travel is making sure the rats won't overheat. Rats can't sweat so their ability to deal with heat is very poor. Anything above 80F (27C) can be dangerous to rats who can only dissipate heat through their tails and paws. So to prevent your rats from overheating on your trip make sure to never leave them alone in the car or in direct view of the sun. If its a hot day its a good idea to turn on the air conditioner as well - just be sure that the air isn't blowing directly into the rats cage. Finally, if you don't have access to an air conditioned vehicle then you can also make shift a way to cool the travel cage if necessary. The best way to do this is to freeze several ice packs and hold them under the cage to keep it cool. You can also provide a frozen water bottle wrapped in a sock inside the cage for the rats to enjoy (careful that this doesn't move around during the trip), along with providing lots of watery cold foods or even ice cubes to keep them cool and hydrated.
Notes about Airplane Travel:
Airplane travel is something you want to avoid if at all possible with your rats. That's because flying by air tends to be quite stressful on them and they are forced to ride with the cargo and other pets. In some cases the rats may even be forced to go through quarantine which can lasts weeks or even months and in the case of such a short lived animal its just not worth it. That being said if you must fly with your rats there are some things you want to do to prepare:
- As with car trips, rats flying on a plane should have a secure and well ventilated carrier with no heavy objects that could harm them.
- Water bottles may be necessary for longer flights, but for shorter ones I'd still recommend providing some watery foods and giving your rats back their water bottle once you arrive at your destination.
- Covering the cage can sometimes help the rats feel more safe in this unfamiliar environment. Just be sure that whatever you cover the cage with is safe to be chewed and won't block the cage from adequate ventilation.
Tips & Tricks on Traveling w/Rats:
Disclosure: Esther (and her site rattrix.weebly.com) is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com